Only Specific Radeon GPUs Will Work With AMD FreeSync Monitors

The folks over at TheTechReport seem to have spotted something interesting regarding AMD’s FreeSync technology. It would appear that not all AMD GPUs are supported and the only confirmed entrants are Hawaii and Tonga, namely R9 285, R9 290 and R9 290X. Needless to say Nvidia GPUs won’t be supported either.

You will probably remember that FreeSync is AMD’s literal answer to Nvidia’s Proprietary G-Sync technology. It was previously thought that FreeSync would be supported on any silicon once the display port was standardized but it looks like there are some architectural changes that matter as well. Which would mean that FreeSync is not entirely code and port standards. Here is a quote I copied from TTR “That means brand-new cards like the Radeon R9 280, 280X, 270, and 270X won’t be FreeSync-capable. Nor will any older Radeons in the HD 7000 and 8000 series. AMD tells us these prior-gen GPUs don’t have the necessary support for the latest DisplayPort standard.”

G-Sync and FreeSync are very important to the PC Gaming scene primarily because technologies such as these mean game changing mechanics in different portions. For example, lower frame counts are easier to digest and look more natural if the GPU output rate matches the screen exactly. Though both have different approaches, the idea remains the same, with one being proprietary and the other being open and free. Variable Refresh Rates are undoubtedly trending in Display Technology, probably right there with 4K. Though there hasn’t been a show down between the red tinted and green tinted technologies yet, FreeSync was (and still is) a really great effort to standardize perfect syncing. However by the looks of it, there might be some time left before that happens. I mentioned previously that the total cost of FreeSync is around $10 but that is the MSRP and the AIBs are completely free to charge you any amount of premium they want.